Already the only chassis manufacturer to offer 24/7 factory-direct support of its motorcoaches, Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp. (FCCC) is expanding its service with a powerful resource that customers can fit into their pockets.

Launched in early 2011, FCCC’s 24/7 Direct initiative created a constantly available, easily accessible network with the goal of providing customers the best possible assistance and answers to even the most complex chassis issues, according to a news release.

The new 24/7 Direct service cards are being mailed this month to all purchasers of new motorcoaches built on an FCCC chassis dating back to Jan. 1, 2011. They’re printed with key support contact information and the customer Vehicle Identification Number to serve as a valuable quick reference, and an embedded USB flash drive makes the card a virtual library of chassis data.

By simply flipping the drive out from one end of the card and plugging it into a computer, a customer gains access to a wealth of information including warranties, maintenance schedules, EPA 2010 emission technology featuring selective catalytic reduction (SCR), vendor categories, website links and entire user manuals. Plus, with a gigabyte of memory on board, there’s plenty of room for additional downloads and updates, enabling customers to utilize the USB for personal storage.

“FCCC wanted to develop a resource that would enable our customers to easily access all of the essential information they need about their chassis,” said Dave Hoover, senior manager of customer support at FCCC. “The 24/7 Direct card and USB drive is compact, but it contains volumes of information that will be important to our customers.

“This is just another example of FCCC’s commitment to our customers and furthers our ‘Driven By You’ mission. And with our around-the-clock direct access to FCCC chassis experts, the 24/7 Direct program offers an unparalleled support system, no matter where our customers are on North America’s roads.”

FCCC’s customer assistance phone line (1-800-FTL-HELP) is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by a team of well-qualified customer service advisors who all have hands-on plant experience and boast an average experience level of 16 years. To complement their expertise, on-the-ground support can be found at more than 400 FCCC service locations in North America. More than 90 of those locations are also part of the Freightliner Oasis Network, a group of dealerships across the country dedicated to serving FCCC RV customers.

The Freightliner Oasis Network is specifically tailored to the RV customer. Each service location has specially trained RV service technicians, separate bays for RV service, secure parking for RV customers and additional amenities specifically for RV owners.

FCCC manufactures premium chassis for the motorhome, delivery walk-in van and school bus and shuttle bus markets. FCCC is a subsidiary of Daimler Trucks North America LLC, a Daimler company.

This info is great for new owners !! However, can one who has an older chassis access similar information for these older units? To me, it seems that the chassis owner needs more support as the coach ages and the info available from the manufacturer would be undoubtedly invaluable.